The Kaito Went Down to Georgia (He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)
by Magenta Fantasies
Summary: Kaito Kid seeks his next target: a jeweled watch that belonged to the Civil War hero Stonewall Jackson, owned by none other than J.D. Hogg. Kid figures this will be a cinch-there's only three cops in the county, and none of them are particularly skilled-but stealing the watch will be the least of his problems in a heist unlike any other.
1. Chapter 1

**The Kaito Went Down to Georgia**

(He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)

Part 1

"Attention passengers, Flight no. 320 will be landing in Atlanta soon. The current time in Atlanta is 9:46 AM. Please return your trays to the upright position and put your bags underneath your chairs. All electronic devices should be turned off. Before exiting the plane, please remove your personal belongings from the seat pockets."

**Now, y'all might be wondering, "Where is this and who is this guy?" I'll get to that soon enough. 'Cause before we get to Hazzard, there's a couple things to get out of the way.**

Kaito Kuroba awoke to the sound of the pilot's voice coming through the loudspeakers. He had slept for almost the entire flight from Seattle. _Why couldn't my target be located on the _west _coast of the U.S.? The flight from Tokyo to Seattle was long enough already._ He thought back to all the research he'd done in preparation. This was the first time he had ever left Japan for a heist, but from the research he'd done, it was very possible that the watch of Stonewall Jackson could be exactly what he was looking for. It met all the criteria to be the Pandora: embedded inside of the watch's crystal face was a large diamond, and according to the ownership information he'd looked up, the watch was always kept locked inside a safe, where light couldn't touch it. According to Kaito's research, the watch was currently owned by the county commissioner of a place called Hazzard County. From what little he could find out, it seemed like a peaceful rural county with a tiny local police force. Kaito smirked. _This is going to be insultingly easy._

After walking around the airport for an hour, Kaito had to wonder if he'd made a mistake in his research and if Hazzard County was even a place. None of the maps that Kaito found had Hazzard County on it, and when he'd asked the shuttle service if they had a shuttle there, the receptionist laughed and told him if she'd never heard of it.

"It's probably some tiny place out in the boondocks," the receptionist had told him.

He'd looked into renting a car, but he couldn't drive well nor did he have a license. Kaito had driven a few times in the past, but only if a disguise called for it. He didn't fancy the idea of driving all over Georgia looking for a town. Having a car would do him no good if he didn't know how to get to Hazzard.

Right now Kaito was in the main parking garage, trying to find a taxi. He doubted he had the funds for a taxi ride; the yen-to-dollars exchange rate had left him with much less money than he'd expected. Riding a taxi could get expensive if Hazzard County was far away, but it couldn't hurt to ask.

A gruff voice echoed across the concrete walls. "So these are the supplies we're supposed to take to Hazzard County?"

Kaito perked up on hearing this, and wove his wave through the labyrinth of cars. As he made his way towards the voice, he kept to the walls to make sure the speaker didn't see him eavesdropping. Not that it was really eavesdropping; everything echoed in this parking garage, so he could overhear the conversation even if he wasn't trying to. He stopped for a moment, hiding behind one of the pillars.

"Yeah, announce it to the whole airport, why don't you?" a second voice snapped. By now, Kaito was close enough that he could see the men speaking. They were parked in a corner of the garage, loading large boxes into the back of an 18-wheeler. "There, that's the last of 'em. Now let's scram before the staff comes over here."

Kaito watched from behind a nearby sedan as the truckers closed the back of the truck. The instant they disappeared inside the cab, he hurried to the back of the truck. Keeping out of the rearview mirror's sight, he lifted the metal bar holding the doors shut and pried the doors open. If these truckers were going to Hazzard, then he could catch a ride with them. Kaito nestled himself between two large boxes as the truck began to move. The boxes seemed to be secured, so getting crushed when the truck picked up speed wouldn't be an issue.

_I'll have to find a way to get back to the airport, but I'll sort that out later. For now, the hardest part of this heist is behind me._

* * *

**Author's Comments**

Earlier I was thinking about how when Kaito Kid does one of his thefts, it's usually in a city. This got me thinking, "What would happen if one of his targets was in the middle of nowhere?" I thought more about where the story would be set, and began going about brainstorming a setting and characters. Shortly after, a better idea came to me. A place in the country where bizarre crimes are the order of the day: Hazzard County.

Hence how you get this _really_ strange idea. I decided I wanted to write a few parts of this and see how it turned out. I have six other chapters written at the point of uploading this (8/31/14) but though they're written out, there are details in them that I haven't filled in. Either way, this was a fun (if bizarre) summer project, and I hope to upload the other chapters relatively soon.

The **bold** indicates the Balladeer's dialogue. I knew from the start that I wanted to have the Balladeer add in bits of narration in this fanfic. It's just not the same without his humorous, occasionally snarky commentary and exposition. This should only get funnier as Kaito arrives in Hazzard and the plot really picks up.

I've decided that language barriers shouldn't be an issue; either Kaito (and other characters who may appear later) speaks English fluently or this is some alternate timeline where Japan took over the U.S. during WWII and everyone speaks Japanese. Take your pick. Language barriers (almost) never came up in Detective Conan; periodically characters appear from all over the world and yet practically all of them speak perfect Japanese.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Kaito Went Down to Georgia**

(He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)

Part 2

With each minute that passed, Kaito regretted stowing away in the back of the eighteen-wheeler more and more.

After leaving the air-conditioned interior of the airport, he'd thought that the parking lot was hot and humid, but sitting in this truck was like sitting inside of a sauna. The air was thick and moist, and even the boxes seemed to be sweating from the profuse heat. Kaito took his shirt off and waved it like a fan in a feeble attempt to give himself some cool air. In one of the corners, he spotted a colorful box much smaller than any of the others. _Soda! I hope there's still some left._ He picked his way through the piles of boxes until he was in the corner with the soda box. The box was already torn open, but five of the soda rings had cans in them. Even the metal cans felt hot to the touch. Kaito shrugged and popped the tab on one. Not only was the soda flatter than a cooking sheet, but it was just as warm. _It's better than nothing, but I still don't feel any cooler._

The doors rattled as the eighteen-wheeler went around a corner. For a moment, Kaito caught a flash of light and a marginally cooler breeze. He navigated his way through the boxes until he was at the other end of the truck, near the back doors. As he looked over the sides of the wall closest to the door, he spotted a little lever. _Just as I thought. There had to be some way to open this door from the inside. _With a gentle nudge, Kaito opened the door a crack.

**Better not open that door too wide. You might get more than breeze; you'll either get the truckers to stop or you'll go flying out the back.**

Warm but fresh air streamed through the crack. Kaito could see outside through the inch or two that the door had opened.

"Wow, it's beautiful around here," he breathed.

The eighteen-wheeler was driving on a winding road leading through the mountains. On one side of the road was lush greenery. Trees in full leaf rose up along the side of the road, and every inch of space was filled with ferns, bushes and vines. Moss and flowers grew between the cracks of the cliff face that rose up above the road. On the other side was a sheer cliff, with only a metal fence and less than a foot of verge separating the drop from the eighteen-wheeler. In spite of this, Kaito didn't feel intimidated. Heights had never bothered him. If anything, he was enthralled by the scenery.

Below the road was a verdant valley dotted with small towns and farms. The sun glinted off a river running between two of the distant mountains. The mountains flattened farther back and a smudge of gray that Kaito assumed was Atlanta laid at the horizon.

Kaito fell backward as the eighteen-wheeler hit a rough patch of road. Maybe it was his imagination, but the truck seemed to be slowing down. He got to his feet and peered out the crack. Soon he saw a sign reading "Inspection Stop: ½ Mile". Kaito grabbed his suitcase and flung open the top of one of the boxes; it appeared large enough for him to fit inside. He threw out some of the Styrofoam peanuts inside, careful to tuck them out of sight behind some other boxes. The truck rolled to a stop as Kaito closed the lid of the box. It was large enough that he could fit himself and his suitcase inside with space to spare. He shuffled around inside, trying to make himself at least somewhat comfortable on top of the plastic and metal contents. The inside of the box was dark, except for a sliver of light coming through the top. Below him were some square boxes and helmets. Kaito's hand passed over a set of long, cylindrical pieces. He held one up to the sliver to inspect it. _These are explosives!_ He dropped it in an instant, eyeing the cylinder nervously as it rolled back into place. _I wonder what these would be used for?_

A couple minutes later, he heard expletives muttered in a strong Southern accent along with the back door opening. Kaito groped around in his suitcase for a smoke bomb, and tucked a few into his pockets. _If worst comes to worst, I can drop a few of these and flee out the back. I don't know where I'll go from there or how I'll get to Hazzard, but I'll sort that out as I go._

Three sets of voices, all with the same drawl, grew closer until Kaito could hear one of them.

"We're already late for our delivery. Can't you just count the boxes and let us go?"

A third voice spoke that Kaito didn't recognize. He figured it must be the inspector at the truck stop. "All right, but next time you watch your mouth, boy, or I'll empty out every single box in the truck for inspection. By the way, you left your sweaty shirt in here."

Kaito froze. _I forgot to put my shirt back on when I hid!_ He slipped a smoke bomb into his hand in preparation.

"That's not mine," one of the truckers replied.

"Of course it's not. You wouldn't fit in that shirt, anyways," the second trucker added.

"It must belong to another trucker." With a clang, the inspector climbed into the back of the eighteen-wheeler and walked around.

Footsteps passed by Kaito's box, but the inspector didn't open it. After a minute, he hopped out of the back. "Y'all are under the legal weight limit, and good to go."

Moments later, the eighteen-wheeler roared to life, and took off down the highway. _They sure seem to be in a hurry, but it works out for me._ Kaito climbed out of the box and put his shirt back on, grimacing as the sweaty cloth covered his skin.

"I sure hope I'll get to Hazzard soon. In the meantime, I'll practice speaking with a Southern accent." Kaito was already talented at imitating other's voices, but having the regional dialect down might come in handy. Besides, he found the dialect charming.

* * *

**Author's Comments**

In The Dukes of Hazzard, the first few episodes were actually filmed in Covington, Georgia. After that, the production team moved the filming to California, and it really shows, at least to someone who's been to the Deep South. Georgia is very lush and green, with thick foliage and large bushes. The scenery in most TDoH episodes is dry, rocky and scrubby, more like chaparral. The 2005 movie was filmed in Louisiana, and I'm not sure where the 2007 movie, The Beginning, was filmed.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Kaito Went Down to Georgia**

(He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)

Part 3

The sun shone high above Hazzard County, casting a golden glow onto the roadside. The highway was empty, with only the distant rumblings of a car in the distance.

**Well, folks, it looks like another peaceful afternoon in Hazzard County. Even Route 36, Hazzard's main road, is empty. **

An orange racecar with a Confederate flag on the roof and a painted "No. 1" on the side barreled down the highway, with the sound of sirens not far behind.

**Whoops, might've spoken too soon.**

"What's Rosco after us for today?" Bo sighed. His curly blond hair brushed against the rear-view mirror as he turned to look at Luke. "We were driving the speed limit until his sirens started blaring." In spite of the annoyance in his voice, he had to admit he sometimes enjoyed these chases.

"Probably just the usual," Luke replied. "Trying to accuse us of breaking our probation, trying to stop us from paying the mortgage so Boss Hogg can foreclose on the Duke Farm, trying to charge us with a trumped-up speeding ticket for money or to take away the General Lee. Take your pick."

"Works for me."

Luke peered into the rear-view mirror. "Rosco's not too far behind. You want to lose him at the next exit?"

"Why wait?" Bo jerked the steering wheel to the left and cut across the yellow line on the highway. The General Lee shot over the edge of the highway, clattering over the rubble along the sides before it went through the field. Bo swerved away as the General Lee approached the thick woods beyond the field, and drove parallel to them, looking for an opening. Bo spotted a dirt road in the woods and turned onto it. A few minutes later, he turned to Luke.

"I don't see Rosco anymore."

"Really? I didn't think we'd lose him so easily. We haven't done any jumps or anything yet." Sure enough, Rosco wasn't visible in the rear-view mirror. It didn't even look like he'd crashed into anything.

"Maybe he's got something better to do than chase us?" Bo suggested.

"Something better to do than chase us? This is Rosco we're talking about. Either way, we won't be able to get back on the highway from here. Let's just take the back route to downtown."

...

...

**Meanwhile, in downtown Hazzard, something else was stirring.** **I think this could get interesting.**

_So this is what Hazzard County is like,_ Kaito thought as he walked through downtown Hazzard, suitcase in hand. Once the truck had left the highway and stopped at a red light, he had climbed out the back. Already he had walked for a mile or so. The roads downtown were lined with brick and wood buildings, none standing more than three stories tall. In the center was a small park filled with greenery and a gazebo._ I kind of like it; it's quaint. Wherever Stonewall Jackson's watch is, I bet it'll be a cinch to take._

"Hello, there. Are you lost?"

"Huh?" Kaito turned to look at a man coming out of one of the buildings. "No, not really." It was a small downtown; how could he possibly get lost?

"Oh, sorry. You looked like you were searching for something. You're not from around here, are you?"

"No, I'm not," Kaito replied. _You'd sure be surprised to know how far I came._ "Actually, I'm looking for the Hazzard Hotel."

"That's over there," the man pointed to the right. "Walk that way for about a block, and you'll find it. It's not hard to spot. Have a nice day."

"Thanks, you too." _People sure are polite around here,_ Kaito thought as he walked in the direction the man indicated. Up ahead, he spotted a two-story wooden building with the sign "Hazzard Hotel" hanging from its upper balcony, along with two wicker baskets filled with flowers. It was an unpretentious but charming building, much like the rest of the town. Kaito walked up the steps on the porch, passing a set of rocking chairs and a bench. It was a relief to get out of the heat and the intense sunlight. A gentle chime rang as he opened the door, but there was no one in the lobby to hear it. Even the receptionist's desk was empty.

_I guess I'll just have to wait. I'll get some things done while I'm here, _Kaito figured. He sat down in one of the cotton armchairs, and picked up a phone book on the coffee table. The phone book was rather thin, so searching through it wouldn't take too long.

"The watch belonged to a guy named Jefferson Davis Hogg. Let's see here…oh! He has almost a whole page of addresses listed; he must be someone important. It looks like 'The Boar's Nest' is where he wants most of his calls to go to. I think it's a safe bet he keeps the watch there. It would make sense to have something like that on display."

Kaito continued skimming through the phone book as he waited. Eventually, a voice interrupted his reading.

"Welcome to the Hazzard Hotel. How can I help you, sir?" A middle-aged woman headed into the lobby through one of the doors, looking intently at him. Before he could get up, she hurried over to him, her long braid of caramel hair swinging behind her. "I'll get you checked in right away. We don't get too many guests around here. What brings you to Hazzard County?"

Kaito wasn't sure if he should be flattered or annoyed. _Why is everybody so interested in me and why I'm here? I haven't even done anything yet._ He realized that this lady wasn't going to give him any peace until he answered. He paused to think up an excuse. "I'm here to visit my aunt."

"Who's she? I bet I've heard of her before."

With a glance down into the phonebook, Kaito tried to pick out a name. Currently he was on the "C" page, and his fingers rested just above a name. "Esther Cryan. I'm her nephew-" He flipped to a different page and pieced together bits from two other names. "Kyle Kurtz. I'm visiting from Atlanta."

The receptionist looked surprised, and became quiet for a moment, as if lost in thought. Kaito decided to burst the awkward silence. "What's wrong?"

"Hon, Esther Cryan died six months ago."

_Shoot! That wasn't a good person to pick. _Thinking quick, Kaito faked a sad sigh. "That's why I'm here. I was called up from Atlanta to sort out an inheritance dispute. I was very close to Aunt Esther, and it really upsets me to talk about her death, so could you please drop the topic?"

That bit of acting seemed to work, as the receptionist moved on. "I'm sorry about bringing that up. Would you like me to get your room key?"

"How much is it to stay here?" Kaito asked.

"Forty dollars a night."

_Only forty dollars a night? Fantastic! _He opened up his suitcase and pulled out his wallet. The exchange rate from yen to dollars at the airport had drained most of his money, so he had less cash than he'd originally planned to bring. "Here you go, ma'am."

"Thank you." The receptionist disappeared behind her desk for a moment, then came back with a room key on a metal chain. On the chain was a piece of paper with a 5 on it. "You have a good stay in Hazzard County."

* * *

**Author's Comments**

I have a headcanon that had the English Detective Conan dub "Case Closed" not ended (and/or if Funimation dubs the new Magic Kaito anime that's coming out this fall, which would be really ironic) that Kaito Kuroba's English name would have been Kyle Kurtz. That's why I picked that name. I have speculated anglicized names for a few other Detective Conan characters just for the heck of it. If you're curious, ask and I'll tell you my theories. I even have a list in the comments of the DeviantART version of this fan fiction (my username there is Magenta-Fantasies).

As for "Esther Cryan", that name has a funny origin. In the Jessica Simpson version of "These Boots Were Made for Walking" (I love that song!), one of the lines is "I'mma send you home to Esther cryin' / but Uncle Jesse sure is gonna be proud". I haven't seen all of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes, but I don't ever remember there being a character named Esther. If there was, she must've been a character of the day or something. Regardless, I decided to form the name "Esther Cryan" from that.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Kaito Went Down to Georgia**

(He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)

Part 4

**It's 10 AM on a Thursday and there's a mighty big crowd in front of the town hall. Did Tax Day come early this year?**

A cluster of people were gathered around the exterior of the town hall. Daisy Duke had gone into town to run some errands, but the crowd had grabbed her attention. She leaned into the crowd in her red high heels, trying to get a better view. _I wonder what all this is about?_

A few minutes later, a white Cadillac pulled up to the curb, and a short, fat man in a white suit and a white Stetson climbed out.

"Boss Hogg, you've gotta see this!" A man in the crowd cried out.

"What's going on around here?" Boss Hogg demanded. Once out of his white Cadillac, he thrust his way through the crowd until he was at the door of the town hall.

"Look down at your feet," someone near the door replied.

Boss Hogg bent down and picked up a small note with a rose taped to one corner of it.

"Tonight, 180 past the General's birth, I will visit the Boar's Nest and take him from his metal barracks," Boss read aloud. "What the heck is that supposed to mean? Hold on a moment. I have General Stonewall Jackson's watch in my safe there…someone's coming to steal it? Tonight?!"

_That antique Boss keeps in his safe at the Boar's Nest? _Daisy had seen it once or twice; occasionally Boss Hogg would put it on display in a glass case, but most of the time he kept it in his safe. It seemed odd to her that the letter would only mention the intention to steal the watch specifically, but the whole situation seemed odd. Who would leave a warning note before committing a crime?

"And this person had the nerve to tell you in advance," a woman in the crowd interjected.

"The note is signed 'Kaito Kid'," Enos peered over Boss' short shoulders to look at the note. "Sounds like an alias."

"Yes, dipstick, but _who_ is it? What kind of thief tells their victims that they're going to be robbed?"

"I bet it's just a prank," Cooter put in. Daisy hadn't noticed him until then, standing in his torn overalls and a baseball cap. She waved, and inched her way through the crowd until he was nearby.

"How long have you been here?" Daisy asked. "I just arrived a few minutes ago."

"You didn't miss anything," Cooter replied. "Mostly people have been standing around, discussing this here note."

"So who do you think left it?" Daisy couldn't think of any suspects off the top of her head. As far as she knew, nothing like this had ever happened in Hazzard. _This is a strange crime, even for Hazzard County. That's saying something._

"Who do _I_ think left it? Why, I bet it was those no-good Duke boys. They're always causing trouble for me." Boss Hogg announced.

_They're only 'causing trouble' for you because you're causing trouble for us and everyone else. _Daisy knew Boss Hogg would use any excuse he could to try and frame her cousins for whatever he could. They were on probation for running moonshine; after they had been caught, Uncle Jesse had agreed to stop making moonshine in exchange for the Duke boys not being imprisoned. However, if they violated their probation, they would get sent to jail. As the crowd murmured, Daisy interjected, "That's impossible. Bo and Luke were helping Uncle Jesse fix the goat pen this morning. They couldn't have left the note."

"They could have left it last night, after the town hall closed," Boss Hogg retorted.

"Let me see that handwriting." Before Boss Hogg could object, Daisy inched her way through the crowd and twisted to see the letter. She knew very well that this note wasn't written by Bo or Luke, and she knew Boss knew this, too. Still, she had to stick up for her cousins. "I'm not sure who wrote this, but it wasn't Bo or Luke. That's definitely not their handwriting."

"What wasn't us?" Luke asked. Daisy turned around to see Luke and Bo at the edge of the crowd. Their orange race car, the General Lee, was parked at the curb, in the nearest space that wasn't occupied by the crowd.

Daisy rolled her gray eyes. "Boss Hogg found a note saying that some thief who calls himself 'Kaito Kid' will steal Stonewall Jackson's watch from the Boar's Nest tonight, and he's trying to pin it on you."

"So someone _warned_ Boss that he's going to steal his watch?" Bo sounded surprised.

"That, and they left a riddle. 'Tonight, 180 past the General's birth, I will visit the Boar's Nest and take him from his metal barracks.'"

"Well, we should get to figuring that out," Bo replied. "We still have plenty of time until tonight. What do you think of it, Luke?"

"I'm not sure. Bo and I will tell Uncle Jesse about this, and we'll think it over."

"I'll try to think more about it while I'm at the Boar's Nest," Daisy added. "I'll also keep an eye out for anyone or anything suspicious."

A voice rose above the crowd. "Boss Hogg, what are you going to do about this?"

Boss Hogg laughed. "If I could, I'd send this 'Kaito Kid' fellow a letter of my own. As long as I'm around, he isn't going to get a tiny glimpse of that watch."

**I wouldn't count on that. If I had to guess, I'd say he's one step closer already.**

**...**

**...**

A clock on the front of a nearby building read 11:43 as Bo and Luke walked out of Rhuebottom's General Store. Luke carried a newly-purchased shovel, to replace the one that had broken this morning when the handle snapped. _That's what I get for pressing so hard into the ground. I should've figured there was a large rock under the spade, and that's why I couldn't break through._ As they walked back to the General Lee, a middle-aged woman with long braided light brown hair waved to them.

"Hello, Mrs. Anderson. How are things going at the Hazzard Hotel?" Bo asked.

"Very nicely. We don't get too much business, but that's why we only have six rooms. However, we had a guest stop by yesterday. He's only staying for a couple days, then he's leaving tomorrow morning." A thoughtful expression crossed her face. "That reminds me. Did you ever meet a boy named Kyle Kurtz?"

Luke and Bo both thought for a moment, then Luke replied, "The name doesn't ring a bell."

Bo nodded in agreement. "I haven't heard of him, either. What did he look like?"

"Not bad looking; average height, slim, with feathery dark brown, almost black hair. He was around your age, probably a little younger. I thought maybe you met him in your school years. He was very polite, though. I bet he gets that from his aunt."

Even with the description, this boy didn't sound familiar to Luke. "Who's his aunt?"

"Esther Cryan. Funny thing is, I thought that she was an only child. How could she have a nephew? He said he was in Hazzard to sort out some inheritance dispute. I didn't know there was still anything going on since Esther died six months ago."

Luke and Bo exchanged glances. It was clear from the expression on his cousin's face that he had reached the exact same conclusion. "Do you think this has anything to do with the note that was found at the door of the town hall?"

Bo's blue eyes glinted. "I don't think it's a coincidence. An unusual visitor shows up, then that there note pops up a day later. Mrs. Anderson, do you think we could find this Kyle Kurtz guy?"

"Sure, you can talk to him. It's not too late in the day, so he might still be in his room." Mrs. Anderson led the way to the Hazzard Hotel. Once the trio was through the white-painted porch, she disappeared behind her desk. Once she had emerged with a key, she pushed open a door in the lobby and headed down the left hall. The trio stopped at Room 5 and Mrs. Anderson knocked. After a moment passed, she knocked again.

Bo shrugged. "Maybe it's for the best that he's not in there. Would you mind if we took a look inside?"

"Go ahead. I trust you boys not to do anything bad. Be sure to tell me how it goes. I'm curious what secrets he's hiding, too."

With a click, Mrs. Anderson inserted the key into the doorknob and unlocked the door. The room had the same décor as the rest of the hotel, unpretentious, but pleasing in a homey way. The bed was made, with two plain pillows neatly arranged on top of the folded white sheets. A wicker chair with a stuffed seat cushion along with a matching basket and table rested in the corner. Beneath the window, partially hidden by the floral patterned curtains, the soft corners of a suitcase stuck out.

"I bet we can get some answers from that," Luke observed, pointing at the suitcase. He didn't like the idea of snooping through some one else's belongings, but he knew the key to the mystery laid within the suitcase.

Bo shrugged. "I guess there's no other way of knowing." He knelt down beside the suitcase, pulled it from underneath the curtains and zipped it open. Folded clothes contained in small air-tight containers lay at the bottom of the suitcase, along with a toothbrush and toothpaste, a packet of tissues, and other basic traveling items.

"Look at all these here costumes." Bo had a brown wig on his head, and held up a wallet-sized square in his hands. "They're packaged in some kind of air-tight containers. I guess that makes it easy to fit more of them in this suitcase. What do you think the costumes are for? And what about this stuff?" He emptied out a bag onto the floor, containing pulleys and piano wire. There was some other equipment in the mix that Bo and Luke didn't recognize, like a bag of black marble-like balls.

**They say you can tell a lot about a person by the contents of their bags. Bo and Luke have just proven that right.**

"Maybe he's an actor? There _could_ be a good reason for all of this." Luke suggested. "Still, it's weird that someone would take a small travel suitcase with them, and have most of it filled with costumes, disguise kits and what I'm guessing is stage equipment."

The corner of a piece of paper caught Luke's eye. "Hold on a moment." He reached behind one of the costumes and pulled out a printed slip a little larger than a check. The writing was in an unfamiliar alphabet, and it had an airplane-shaped logo in the bottom left-corner.

"If this is Kyle's plane ticket, we might be able to figure out what he came from and maybe where he's going next. That could be useful," Luke mused. "Thing is, I can't read the writing on it. What language is this? It looks like Japanese or Chinese."

"There's a notebook and a pen, too." Bo pulled out a notebook from the bottom of the suitcase and flipped through it before putting it back. "Too bad it's not written in English, or we might find another lead."

"It looks like a lot of things are missing from the suitcase," Luke commented. "Don't you find it weird that he wouldn't have any money on him, or a passport?"

"He must've taken those things with him, wherever he is," Bo replied. "Now all we need to do is find that place."

* * *

**Author's Comments**

I have decided to rename "The Heisei Hoods" as "The Kaito Went Down to Georgia (He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)". I still plan to work in a line about the Duke boys are known as the "modern-day Robin Hoods" similar to how Kid is known as the "modern-day Arsène Lupin".

I always found it fun to write riddles in my stories. It's also fun to try and decode them in other's stories. There are quite a lot of riddles in my original fiction, such as Eternity and Le Bonhomme du Minuit as well. I miss the days where Kaito Kid would leave riddles for the police in his announcements instead of just saying, "I'm going to steal (insert valuable) at (insert time and place)" like in the more recent stories.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Kaito Went Down to Georgia**

(He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)

Part 5

Luke and Bo drove through downtown Capitol City, heading towards the Capitol City Public Library. If there was anywhere they could find some answers to the bizarre riddle from earlier, it was there. They had given up on deciding to find Kaito Kid; he could be anywhere in Hazzard at this point, and solving the riddle was more important in the moment.

**This here is Capitol City. It's the closest thing around Hazzard to a real city. If Hazzard doesn't have something, Capitol City will, and that's exactly why the Duke boys came down here. **

The General Lee rounded a corner and turned into a small alley lined with garbage cans. Luke cringed as the General Lee's orange edges passed inches away from a garbage can.

"We'll have to stop," he decided, putting the orange Charger into park. "There's no way we'll get any further into this here alley."

"If I was driving, I could've gone in a few inches further," Bo joked. He walked around to the back of the car. "We're just barely inside the alley. Someone coming along from the road could easily spot us."

Luke shrugged. That was the only problem with the General Lee. Everyone knew the orange Charger with the white "01" on the sides and a Confederate flag on the top as Bo and Luke's car, so it wasn't the best car for stealthy undertakings. However, the General Lee was also the fastest car around; its speed had bailed the Duke boys out of many conflicts.

"We'll have to be a little faster than usual. Today's not the day to get on the bad side of Sheriff Little."

**Oh, there's one little problem I forgot to mention. Capitol City is in Chickasaw County, which means two things. Luke and Bo's probation doesn't let them leave Hazzard County, so they can't be found in Chickasaw, and it's under the watchful eye of Sheriff Little. He hates the Dukes almost as much as Boss Hogg, and he'd like nothing more than to catch them in his county and put them behind bars.**

Luke and Bo hurried out of the alley, making their way down the street towards the library a few blocks away. They were about half-way there, when Luke nudged Bo into the doorway of a hair parlor.

"What was that about?" Bo asked.

Luke cast a subtle glance over his shoulder. "A police car passed by. I don't think they saw us, but we can't be too careful."

As soon as the police cruiser was out of sight, Luke and Bo stepped out of the hair parlor and continued towards the library.

"Tonight, 180 past the General's birth, I will visit the Boar's Nest and take him from his metal barracks," Luke recited. He and Bo had made it to the library without any other hitches. Books sprawled haphazardly across the square library table the duo sat at.

"General Stonewall Jackson was born in 1824." Bo looked up from one of the books. "180 years after that would be 2004."

"Still, that doesn't seem right. Why would Kaito Kid mention the year, but also say that the theft will take place tonight?"

"It could be for 180 degrees, so the opposite or reverse of 1824. But no, that would be 4281. We'll all be long-gone by then." Bo added.

Both Bo and Luke stopped to think. The library went quiet for a moment, filled with the sounds of paper rustling and books being set down. A moment later, a woman's voice rose softly over the shuffle.

"So we'll pick this one?"

"Are you sure, Claret? It's awful close to that farm."

"Don't use that name in public. We'll decide for sure once the boss gets back to us. Once we find out how much space we'll need, we'll scope out some places and sort the other details out."

"Let's do that another day. It was _so_ hot outside, especially wearing black. I hope every day around here isn't like this."

"Would it be okay if we wore different colors?"

"No way. Didn't you say you wanted to prove yourself earlier?"

"Well, if that Hogg guy we met with was correct, we won't have anything to worry about."

Luke glanced up. Beyond the bookshelf were two women dressed entirely in black. One was had long straight auburn hair and an hourglass figure, while the other was tall and thin with a bob of curly ash blonde hair. They both had short black dresses and black boots, though the styles differed. Their table was just as buried as Bo and Luke's, only covered with maps instead of books. Before Luke could stop himself, he was already over at their table.

"Hello, ladies. Looking for something?"

The two women looked up at Luke. Despite their neutral, if slightly annoyed expressions, they looked even prettier up close. Before either of them could speak, Bo was at Luke's side.

"We're experts when it comes to getting around Hazzard," he added, looking down at the maps spread across the table, then up again at the two women.

Luke inspected the maps. Most of the maps were of Hazzard County, though a few depicted surrounding counties like Chickasaw. One detailed the sizes and locations of plots of land, another showed topographical features and another showed farms and other properties.

"We have a guide already," the blonde-haired woman replied. Her companion gave her a quick look, then spoke up. "We've got a lot to get through. You boys must have work of your own to do, too."

Luke and Bo both picked up the hint. "All right then. Take care." Luke gave the two women a small wave and he and Bo headed back to their table.

"That was a nice diversion," Luke remarked. "Now let's get back to the riddle at hand."

"I think we were talking about the '180 past the General's birth'."

"That part must refer to a time of day," Luke replied.

"Yeah, but what time of day?" Bo wondered. "I agree that the 180 isn't years. In fact, I don't think the riddle mentions what 180 is for."

"I bet 180 is a unit of time other than days. It can't be weeks or days since the note said 'tonight'. I doubt it's seconds, since I don't think three minutes would make much of a difference in the time of the theft. It probably is hours. Sixty minutes is one hour, so 180 minutes is three hours." Luke concluded.

"So three hours ahead of the General's birth. Does that mean 1824 is a time other than a year?" Bo looked back inside his book. "I'll try to find out what time of day Stonewall Jackson was born at. I wonder what 1824 would be? Seconds? Minutes?"

Luke nodded. "It could be minutes. 18:24."

A moment later, he had an epiphany. 24 hour time was also known as military time. The general's birth was in "1824" so in military time that would be "18:24" or "6:24 P.M.". _Add three hours onto that, and you get 9:24 P.M. _

A triumphant gleam came into Luke's blue eyes. "I think I know when Kaito Kid is going to strike."

* * *

I've decided that Hazzard County is permanently entrenched in the 1980s, like it's in a temporal bubble where time stopped in the 1980s. Hence, everyone goes to the library to look up things instead of using computers, people use paper maps instead of GPS or online maps, and everyone has CVs in their cars instead of cell phones. Also, they all have cars from the late 60s, 1970s and 1980s.

Some people say that when a show, movie, et cetera strongly references things in its time of production that it "dates" it, but I don't see that as a bad thing. In many cases it's a good thing, and The Dukes of Hazzard immediately comes to mind as an example of that. The various modern adaptations just don't have the same charm to them as the 80s TV show did. It probably helps that I love the eighties; if I could live in a different time period, I would definitely live in the 1980s. I was born ten years too late.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Kaito Went Down to Georgia**

(He Was Looking for a Jewel to Steal)

Part 6

Daisy Duke stood behind the counter of the bar in the Boar's Nest, cleaning out some of the glasses. Knowing Bo and Luke, they were probably driving around Hazzard, trying to figure out who this "Kaito Kid" was. She wished she could aid them directly, but today she had to work. Normally Daisy didn't mind working at the Boar's Nest. Aside from the occasional unruly customers and having to deal with Boss Hogg and Rosco, it was a decent job. As she rinsed a tall beer glass, she mulled over the riddle from earlier. During her lunch break, she had called Bo and Luke on the C.B. radio from her car, Dixie.

**The Dukes aren't the only ones busy. Boss Hogg has been up in arms preparing to protect Stonewall Jackson's watch. He reset the code to his safe and everything. Meanwhile, Rosco, Enos and Cletus checked every nook and cranny of the outside for security breaches. To complicate things, Boss ordered each of them to guard one door around the building. Luckily for them, the Boar's Nest only has three doors.**

"How's the guard work going, Enos?" Daisy asked as she placed a few drinks on a nearby table. "Can I get you a glass of water or lemonade? It looks real hot out there."

"It is, but things are going just fine. A glass of water would be nice, though." Despite the sweat on his face, Enos wore his signature beaming smile. Daisy wondered if he always smiled that wide, or only when he was around her; it was no secret that he had a crush on her. "I don't mind standing the sun all day if it's to help uphold the law."

"Speaking of that, Bo and Luke were just-" Daisy stopped her sentence short to avoid revealing her cousins had broken their probation. "They looked into the riddle further, and they think Kaito Kid is going to be here at 9:24 PM."

"I dunno. Boss says that he wants the doors to the Boar's Nest guarded for the whole day. I'm supposed to watch everyone that goes in, like this guy right here."

A boy with feathery black-brown hair approached the door. He looked around the same age as Daisy or her cousins, but a few years younger. Daisy looked at him, and he smiled, but she knew she had never seen him before. Enos looked him over, walking around him and stopping every few seconds. The boy looked at Enos while he was behind him, then at Daisy, and rolled his eyes. His eyes were a deep blueberry shade; dark blue with a hint of gray. After a moment, Enos stepped aside. "You look like a decent person. Come on in."

As soon as Enos moved, the boy walked in and took a seat by the bar, right where Daisy was working. For a moment she wondered if he was old enough to drink alcohol. "Hi. What can I get for you? We have ice water, lemonade, soda, sweet tea-"

"Sweet tea? Is it hot or cold?" the boy asked.

"Of course it's cold," Daisy replied, bemused by his question. _It's certainly hot out today. The heat must have gotten to him._ "Drinking warm sweet tea would be like drinking flat soda."

"I'll take a glass of sweet tea, then. How much will that be?"

"Two dollars. I'll have that ready in a moment." Daisy went over to a clear plastic pitcher and poured a tall glass of the golden-brown liquid. She dropped in a couple ice cubes and a straw, then brought the drink over. The boy handed her two bills. "By the way, I haven't seen you around here before. What's your name? I'm Daisy Duke."

"Kyle Kurtz. I'm up from Atlanta."

"So you're from the big city?" Daisy asked. "What's it like, living there?

"It's great, but so far I like Hazzard a lot, too. It seems real peaceful here."

Daisy laughed. "Things can get mighty eventful here sometimes. For whatever reason, Hazzard County is a magnet for all sorts of odd crimes." She thought back to the note that had showed up at the door of the town hall. "So what brings you to Hazzard?"

"Family business. My aunt Esther passed away six months ago, so I had to go to Hazzard to sort some things out with the inheritance. Is it always this hot around here?"

Daisy could understand why Kyle had changed the subject. "I always thought it was hotter in Atlanta, and cooler up here in the mountains. Then again, it's unusually hot today. It's got to be in the high nineties."

Daisy checked the time. It was 5:37, and the time of the announced theft was growing closer. She decided that she would stay behind that night to make sure everybody left. If Rosco, Enos and Cletus forgot she was inside, she could try to stop the theft.

"Where is the bathroom?" Kyle asked.

"It's down that way," Daisy pointed to the far side of the Boar's Nest. "Go around the corner, then you'll see it."

"Thanks." Kyle hopped out of his seat and wove his way around the tables until he was out of sight behind the corner. Now that he was gone, Daisy realized she should get back to her job. She enjoyed talking to customers-especially if they were newcomers, and even more so if they were cute boys-but she knew Boss Hogg wouldn't be happy if he saw all the empty glasses on the bar table. One by one she picked up the glasses and placed them in the wash bin in the sink with a squirt of soap. After she had cleaned all of the glasses and returned them to their proper places, she glanced at the bar, then at the old clock hanging on the wall. Kyle hadn't come back from the bathroom yet, but it had only been five minutes. Daisy started washing the plates that had piled up to the side of the sink. It took longer to get all of the scraps of food off them. Once she had finished, she stacked the plates and put them back in the cupboard. She looked at the bar, which was now empty, before looking at the clock. It was 6:02; there were still three and a half hours left before the theft took place. Twenty minutes had passed, and Kyle was still in the bathroom. Daisy got out from behind the bar and went over to the door.

"Enos, did anybody leave the Boar's Nest recently?"

"Well," Enos stopped to think for a moment. "There was a whole group of men, four or five of them, that left. About a half hour before there was a couple together, and before that, well, I can't remember."

"Did you see a young man leave on his own?" Daisy asked, feeling a twinge of concern for Kyle. _It's possible that he's _still_ in the bathroom._ _Maybe I should go check on him. He might not be feeling well._

"Not recently. Sorry, Daisy," Enos replied, his hazel eyes downcast. Daisy had to admit he looked cute when he was upset. Nonetheless, she decided to console him.

"That's all right. I'll go ask Cletus if he's seen anything. Thank you." Daisy waved to Enos, and walked across to the other door. She knew Rosco was guarding one of the doors, but she figured asking him wouldn't do her a lot of good. He and the Dukes had never gotten along well, and he would probably assume Daisy was up to something.

"Did anybody leave recently?" She asked.

Cletus blinked. Daisy realized that asking him wasn't the smartest idea. Though Cletus was on mostly pleasant terms with the Dukes, he wasn't very observant. His light blue eyes always seemed to stare off into space, even when he was behind the wheel. Daisy had to wonder what kept his mind occupied.

"This is the back door, so I think I'd remember if someone left this way," Cletus replied. "I haven't seen much action today, which I guess is a good thing, since I'll be seeing a lot of it tonight when that Kaito Kid fellow shows up. What time is it now?"

"A little after 6:15. You've still got a couple hours. Good luck."

Daisy walked over to the bathrooms. She knocked on the door of the men's bathroom. There was no response.

"Kyle, are you in there?" Daisy knocked again after speaking. A few seconds passed, and there was still no response. The brunette decided to raise her voice. "Kyle, are you all right? You've been in there for a while."

She waited for a minute, growing more and more impatient.

"Okay, I'm coming in." Daisy announced. She twisted the doorknob of the bathroom and walked in. As she entered, she realized she had never been inside a men's bathroom before. Cleaning the bathrooms was someone else's job. Now she felt relieved about that; the men's bathroom was messier than the women's bathroom, and it had an acrid smell to it. Aside from that and the urinal on the wall, it was disappointingly similar to a women's bathroom.

Moments later, a metallic clacking came from the floor followed by smoke. Daisy coughed, and behind her she could hear the squeak of the door hinges closing. The air was growing thicker by the minute, and a haze was coming over her mind as well as her lungs. As the feeling grew more intense, Daisy's eyelids drooped and she collapsed to the floor.

...

...

Kaito walked out of the men's bathroom, disguised as Daisy and never feeling more satisfied. He'd known that he would need a disguise today, so he had brought along a couple wigs that he stored in tiny air-compressed cases, a case of different colored contacts and a container of latex putty for casting masks. He had removed and borrowed her clothes, and now Daisy was locked and tied up inside one of the stalls. The scent of sleeping gas trickled through the edges of the door. _Now to find a way to keep people out of there, _he thought as he opened a nearby supply closet. Kaito rummaged through the bathroom and cleaning supplies, and pulled out an "out of order" sign. After hanging it on the door of the men's bathroom, he headed into the women's bathroom. He smirked as he saw his disguised reflection, a perfect imitation of Daisy's. _She was _really_ hot. I hope I can pull this off without anyone noticing._

Kaito recalled a time where Conan had asked him about why he often disguised as girls. This time, while trying to open a supposedly-uncrackable safe called the Iron Tanuki, he had been disguised as a maid. He had answered, "It's just more fun that way." It was true; it was much more enjoyable to undress and borrow the clothes from a young woman than a man. After that, he had put on the brown wig-one of many that he'd brought with him-and styled it to look like Daisy's hair. He'd also kept some mask putty handy, so he could lay it over Daisy's face to make a perfectly accurate mask. As for filling the bra, that was where toilet paper came in handy.

As he returned to the bar, he noticed that most the patrons had left. Only two of the tables were occupied. A young policeman with a cheery yet dorky demeanor went up to him. Kaito recognized him as the same policeman who had checked him at the door when he entered the Boar's Nest.

"Daisy, I was wondering where you were. Boss Hogg wanted me to tell you he's closing the Boar's Nest early for security reasons. He wants everyone out of here by 8:30 so that Kaito Kid can't get in."

_Not that it'll make any difference. I'm right in front you. _Kaito looked around for a clock, and spotted a wooden wall clock above the bar, which read "6:56". There were less than three hours left until his heist. He had spent far more time than he'd intended to in the bathroom, but he couldn't help himself.

"By the way, I saw one other person leave, an old man," Enos continued.

"Why does that matter?"

Enos looked confused. "Didn't you ask me if anyone had left? I thought you were looking for that boy you were talking to earlier."

_He must be referring to me, _Kaito realized. "Someone else told me they saw him leave a while ago."

"I just saw your cousins, too. They wanted keep an eye on things to help stop the theft tonight, but Sheriff Rosco thought they would only cause more trouble and told them to go away."

"Really?" _From what I've seen of the police around here, they need all the help they can get._

Enos' surprise faded to confusion. "You know how he is with those two. I always liked Bo and Luke, but he just can't stand them."

"I've got to get back to work. You should, too. We'll talk later, okay?" Kaito gave the young officer a small wave and went behind the bar. _As soon as the police get this place cleared out, I've got a little more work of my own to do. _Reaching onto the bar shelf, he removed a bottle of whiskey. He opened the small window at the bar, and poured a line of it along the outside windowsill.

* * *

**Author's Comments**

Yes, I am still working on this fanfic, it's just that it's been on the back burner for months. Original fiction always takes priority over fan fiction in my book, and I've been working on a new story since late November. Ironically, whenever I want to write more of this fanfic, it's always at times that I am unable to write. I don't know if I'm going to finish it or not, but I have at least another few chapters almost ready for uploading and I have the storyline plotted up to a certain point.

I've always wondered how Kaito Kid makes his disguises so accurate, to the point that he can perfectly resemble almost anyone (except children; even Kaito Kid can't make himself appear significantly shorter, though in a very unusual circumstance he was able to impersonate Genta). It's never really touched upon, but I have my own theories.

I decided that both Cletus and Enos should be in this story. I prefer Enos, but Cletus was a perfectly acceptable replacement, and I like both characters. Also, both of them appear in the 2005 The Dukes of Hazzard movie. Cletus isn't mentioned by name (except in a deleted scene), but he's listed in the credits. Besides, with Kid in town, Boss Hogg is going to need all the help he can get, and even that won't be enough.


End file.
